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Which college football games will define the 2024 season? Mike Marteny takes a look at the games that will be talked about all season long for one reason or another.
As of July 1, the Pac-12, or "Conference of Champions" as Bill Walton liked to call it, was no more. College football will never be the same. The Power-5 is a Power-4 now with the Big 12 (14) tentatively hanging on to power conference status. Also, 10 teams were thrown into already existing conferences with Washington State and Oregon State left out in the cold. It's a travesty considering how good those teams have been in both basketball and football for most of the last decade. Oregon State just did a massive renovation on Reser Stadium...just to host Mountain West games.
The show must go on. Regardless of how you feel about the expansion of these massive conferences and the death of the Pac-12, it will certainly mean some interesting regular-season matchups that we aren't used to seeing.
I will highlight which games mean the most every week and why so you know which games to seek out each week. These won't be the only games of the week, but if you can only watch a game or two per week, I'll whittle down the list for you. Let's see what the new era of college football has in store for us in 2024 (aside from a less interesting regular season and watered-down playoff). Keep in mind that these may change due to underachieving or overachieving teams. There are a few every year. This is just a preliminary list.
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College Football Week 0 (August 24, 2024)
Florida State vs. Georgia Tech at Dublin, Ireland: There are only four total games in "Week 0," which seems appropriately named this year. A game in Dublin changes things. Besides, don't you want to see if Haynes King can take down the Seminoles? I do! By the way, D.J. Uiagalelei moves on to school number three, replacing Jordan Travis at Florida State. That holds some intrigue, right?
College Football Week 1 (August 29 - September 2, 2024)
North Dakota State at Colorado (Thursday):
North Dakota State has won six of their last seven games against FBS opponents dating back to 2010.
Their next game against an FBS team is August 29th vs. Colorado.
They have won 3 consecutive games against teams in the Big 12 (Kansas, K State, Iowa State), which Colorado will… pic.twitter.com/TkF0oV5q0R
— CFB Kings (@CFBKings) May 2, 2024
The Bison have won games against the Big 12 and Big 10 on the road before. Who can resist the best team at the FCS level squaring off with Prime Time in Folsom Field? Make no mistake about it, this is a big game!
Clemson vs. Georgia at Atlanta, FL: We're going to learn an awful lot about both teams in this one. Both teams return their starting quarterbacks from last year. The difference is that Carson Beck consistently made big plays when Georgia's back was to the wall in 2023. Cade Klubnik crumpled under pressure. Advantage: Georgia
Penn State at West Virginia: ESPN is making a lot of noise about Penn State already. That balloon could be deflated quickly if the Mountaineers are as good as many think they are. This is a winnable home game in Morgantown.
South Dakota State at Oklahoma State: The Jacks dethroned the mighty Bison again last year. Ollie Gordon II is arguably the best back in college football, but that SDSU run D looked tough last year. This is going to be closer than many think.
Miami (FL) at Florida: Take a peek at Florida's schedule. They need this if they want to finish at .500. They might not get it. Miami made some huge moves in the offseason, most notably bringing in Cam Ward from Washington State.
Notre Dame at Texas A&M: Both teams have a lot to prove in this game.
USC at LSU (Sunday): Lincoln Riley faces life without Caleb Williams, for real this time. Miller Moss looked really good in the bowl game. Both teams were gutted on offense by the draft. We'll see if both high-powered offenses reloaded or if they more resemble a patchwork quilt.
College Football Week 2 (September 6-7, 2024)
Texas at Michigan: The game everyone wanted to see last year was moved to 2024. Texas has the same team. Michigan doesn't even have the same coach!
Iowa State at Iowa: Little brother looks really good and is tired of being slighted (again). The CyHawk is going back to Ames.
Baylor at Utah: The new-look Bears become the first Big 12 team to head to Rice-Eccles, where golden boy Cam Rising returns for the Utes. Expectations are high in Utah. We'll find out if they should be.
South Florida at Alabama: No, this isn't a typo. This game matters. Alabama looked awful against USF last year and the Bulls somehow managed to keep Byrum Brown. He might be better than Jalen Milroe...
Byrum Brown (QB-USF) surging to the top of my 2024 Heisman Watch...kid can flat out play: 3200 passing yards, 800 rushing yards and 37 all-purpose TDs as a RS-Freshman? Sign me up for more of this!
Video: 4TD 2nd half vs Rice- Threw for 2, ran for 1, caught 1 pic.twitter.com/DBzV4MRJMK— Jason McGensy (@jpmcgensy) April 15, 2024
Kansas at Illinois: There's no major reason. I just want to see if Jalon Daniels looks like he did in 2022 or before he got hurt last year. There is a big difference.
Colorado at Nebraska: These teams absolutely hate each other. Oklahoma and Nebraska had a fierce rivalry, but there was mutual respect on both sides. Not here. Dylan Raiola and Shedeur Sanders? Sign me up!
Houston at Oklahoma: Houston finally fired Dana Holgorsen a few years too late. Willie Fritz moves west on I-10 to take over the Cougs, who are still a force on offense. Oklahoma's schedule gets tough early.
College Football Week 3 (September 12-14, 2024)
Arizona at Kansas State (Friday): Noah Fifita and Tetairoa McMillan stayed in Tucson despite their coach leaving. That duo gives Arizona a great shot at the watered-down playoff.
? You won't BELIEVE what Arizona Star Players Noah Fifita & Tetairoa McMillan are using their NIL Money for...
On Saturday, the duo announced that they would return to Arizona next season, which shocked MANY in the sport
Their Head Coach, Jedd Fisch, had just left for the… pic.twitter.com/cdshR0cryO
— Blue Bloods Bias (@bluebloodsbias) January 22, 2024
Those guys are just built differently.
Alabama at Wisconsin: What? An SEC team leaving the South in non-conference? You better believe it! Jump around!
Memphis at Florida State: Jay Norvell's former team comes down to Tallahassee for a visit. The Florida State secondary will be tested in this one. Memphis has a proven passing attack with Seth Henigan, DeMeer Blankumsee, and Roc Taylor.
Oregon at Oregon State: The Civil War for my birthday weekend? It would be awesome if it weren't so tragic...
Washington State at Washington: See also: Oregon at Oregon State, but the Apple Cup instead of the Civil War.
West Virginia at Pittsburgh: It's the Backyard Brawl, y'all. Except they don't say y'all in Pittsburgh. If they did during this game, it would undoubtedly be laced with expletives.
Georgia at Kentucky: Former Bulldog Brock Vandagriff takes on the Bulldogs in his new home.
Colorado at Colorado State: No, it's not at Mile High. It's in Fort Collins. If you don't remember this game from last year, it was one of the best of the season!
College Football Week 4 (September 19-21, 2024)
Tennessee at Oklahoma: Josh Heupel returns to the place where he won a national title 24 years ago. That's a nice welcome to the SEC for the Sooners.
Josh Heupel will return to Norman on Sept. 21!
It will be OU's first SEC game. Arnold and Nico's first SEC starts.
It will be Heupel's first time back in Norman.
That will be a BIG day in Norman. pic.twitter.com/JIBSWc2sm3
— Locked On Sooners Podcast (@LockedOnSooners) July 16, 2024
USC at Michigan: This is a conference game now! The crowd will be wired at the Big House, but USC has arguably the better team.
College Football Week 5 (September 26-28, 2024)
Oklahoma at Auburn: We don't really know what Auburn will look like yet, but we do know that Hugh Freeze is very good at getting production from the talent he has. Oklahoma's first road trip in the SEC won't be an easy one.
Mississippi State at Texas: Jeff Lebby orchestrated at offense at Oklahoma last year that beat Texas. Just saying...
Florida State at SMU: One team has mountains of NIL money because they were doing it long before it was cool (or legal). The other has D.J. Uiagalelei at quarterback. They are not the same.
Arizona at Utah: This game happened dozens of times in Pac-12 play, but it means a little more this year with the expanded playoff. This is for newcomer supremacy in the Big 12.
Georgia at Alabama: You know the Bulldogs are still seething about the loss to Bama in the SEC title game that cost them a shot at a third straight title.
College Football Week 6 (October 3-5, 2024)
Michigan at Washington: It's a rematch of the national title game last year, but neither team has the same coach or the same quarterback. Loses a bit of luster, don't you think?
Miami (FL) at California: This is now a conference game. Ridiculousness at its finest. On the bright side, now Californians can get a taste of the Miami swagger that you either love or loathe.
Clemson at Florida State: Anyone on ESPN will tell you that this is the battle for ACC supremacy. I have my doubts...
College Football Week 7 (October 8-12, 2024)
Mississippi at LSU: These were two of the most potent offenses in the SEC last year. One will be again. What about the home team? We'll find out!
Ohio State at Oregon: How about this one? It's now a conference game and both teams have a legitimate chance to be ranked in the top five when this kicks off at The Zoo. From The Shoe to The Zoo...how will the Buckeyes do?
Penn State at USC: If Penn State is really that team this year, this is going to be an interesting trip out west for the Nittany Lions.
Texas vs. Oklahoma at Dallas: Same rivalry, same stadium, same state fair. Different conferences and different kickoff times. I'm not sure how I feel about the 3:30 Eastern Time kickoff. Okay...I am. I don't like it, but what else is new? I've turned into quite the college football curmudgeon thanks to the systemic destruction of the sport I love.
Number of matchups in SEC Rivalries where BOTH teams were ranked:
43: Red River Shootout
30: 1st Saturday in November
26: Iron Bowl
24: Deep South's Oldest Rivalry
23: World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party
19: Tiger Bowl
11: Southwest Classic
10: Lonestar Showdown
6: Egg Bowl pic.twitter.com/0oMOO1BfCw— Kyle Umlang (@kyleumlang) May 30, 2024
College Football Week 8 (October 15-19, 2024)
Oregon at Purdue (Friday): The Ducks get to find out how tough Ross-Ade can be...on a Friday night, no less!
LSU at Arkansas: It's Das Boot about six weeks earlier than usual. The Piggies usually have some life left in mid-October.
Kentucky at Florida: Yeah, Florida leads the all-time series 53-21, but the Wildcats have won three in a row. Billy Napier is a likable guy, but that may not allow him to keep his job if Kentucky's streak runs to four. The last time Kentucky won four in a row in this series was from 1948-51.
Alabama at Tennessee: Cigars for the winner...which early Vegas odds have as Alabama -2.5.
Georgia at Texas: Woo Doggy, there hasn't been a game this big in Austin since...well, since Alabama came to town in September of 2022. The difference is that this is the week after the Shootout.
College Football Week 9 (October 22-26, 2024)
Missouri at Alabama: Don't laugh...the Tigers won 11 games last year and beat Ohio State in a bowl game. The Tigers could saunter into Tuscaloosa at 7-0 and they almost beat Georgia in each of the last two seasons. This is a sneaky-good SEC game this year.
Florida State at Miami (FL): These teams still don't like each other (and probably never will). This is a dangerous game for Florida State.
Kansas at Kansas State: The Sunflower Showdown could have a little extra juice this year if both teams live up to the hype.
College Football Week 10 (October 29 - November 2, 2024)
Oregon at Michigan: The Ducks are getting the Nebraska treatment. Remember when Nebraska joined the Big 10 (18)? They got Ohio State, Michigan, and Wisconsin (back when they were good) all during the first season. Oregon's trip to the Big House could be a really cold one at the beginning of November.
Ohio State at Penn State: If you talk to the right people (who all seem to be located somewhere between western and eastern Pennsylvania), you'll hear that James Franklin is leading the team to the promised land this year. If the Nittany Lions are to have a shot at the watered-down playoff, they'll need this one. In a shocking turn of events, this is NOT the Whiteout game? Huh?
James Franklin: "We feel very strongly there should be only one White Out per year."
BUT if Penn State hosts a first-round playoff game, it will be part of the discussion.
"Between (AD) Pat Kraft and Mother Nature, we may have one of the biggest White Outs we've ever had."
— Tyler Donohue (@TDsTake) July 24, 2024
USC at Washington: This may have meant a shot at the Pac-12 title in previous years. Now it's for fourth place in the REALLY Big Ten (18).
Florida vs. Georgia at Jacksonville: The World's Largest Outdoor Cocktail Party already has an opening line of Georgia -20.5. It might be larger than that by kickoff. At least the Florida fans will have plenty of cocktails available to drown another potential losing season.
College Football Week 11 (November 5-9, 2024)
Alabama at LSU: Much has been made of Oklahoma's tough schedule, but how about Alabama? They play at Wisconsin, Oklahoma, Tennessee, and LSU and have home games with Georgia, Missouri, and Auburn. Ouch! But hey...they get Mercer in Week 12 to recuperate.
Oklahoma at Missouri: This is the first meeting of the former rivals since 2011 and the first at Faurot Field since Missouri upended the Sooners in 2010. Oklahoma has won 20 of the last 22 meetings, but Missouri is the early 2.5-point favorite.
Washington at Penn State: This could be a big game. It could be a game between 6-3 teams. We don't know. All we know for sure is that the Whiteout will be a little different this year.
“I think we all know what we would choose if we were going to choose a White Out game.”
Penn State was at the mercy of the networks when choosing Washington as the Whiteout, said Pat Kraft in Indy. More via @BobbyFlo7 on why Washington made sense: https://t.co/VsuEVD8krM
— Max Ralph (@maxralph_) July 24, 2024
Iowa State vs. Kansas at Kansas City: This could have playoff implications for one or both teams if the preseason hype is to be believed. Moving it to Arrowhead makes sense. You know what doesn't make sense? The Big 12 morons not protecting Farmageddon. I will die on this hill.
BYU at Utah: The Holy War is a conference game. College football life doesn't get much better than this. Don't worry...the Big 12 will find some way to screw this up too. They ruined Oklahoma-Nebraska. They killed Farmageddon. History says the Holy War will eventually be next.
It’s still the off-season and we have BYU and Utah athletes talking smack already?
The Holy War is so back ?
— ??TleavYfan✈️? (@TLeavYfan) July 10, 2024
Florida at Texas: Texas is 2-0-1 against the Gators, but they haven't played since 1940. This is another of those cool new conference games, but the luster might have worn off of Florida by this time.
College Football Week 12 (November 12-16, 2024)
Tennessee at Georgia: The Bulldogs are already 16.5-point favorites. That seems a little much, but it all will depend on what happens with Nico Iamaleava. Is he the second coming of Hendon Hooker or is he just a continuation of Joe Milton III?
Nebraska at USC: Hey, who doesn't want to get out of Nebraska in the middle of November? By this time we've usually been without sun for a week or so...
Oregon at Wisconsin: I don't think this will necessarily be a good game. I'm just going to be watching to see the Oregon Duck jump around.
College Football Week 13 (November 19-23, 2024)
Alabama at Oklahoma: If the tickets didn't cost as much as a mortgage payment, I would head to Norman for this one. This could end up being a huge game!
USC at UCLA: What's with the West Coast newcomers to the Big Ten (18) getting so many left coast games late in the season? I want to see these teams play in a blizzard somewhere in the Midwest!
Stanford at California: The Axe will still be sharp. The students will still have a four-hour staredown during the game. Both teams will be out of playoff contention, so it's still all about the Big Game.
Iowa State at Utah: It can get cold in Ames in November, so that won't be much of a deterrent. However, Utah is used to hosting big late-season games. Iowa State isn't that used to playing them on the road well above sea level.
Washington State at Oregon State: The Pac-2 Championship will be on the CW Network. Just a friendly reminder that bureaucrats shouldn't be making huge decisions for the conference. These two teams are the catastrophic orphans of the Pac-12 eating itself.
College Football Week 14 (November 26-30, 2024)
Mississippi State at Mississippi (Friday): You can say this for the Egg Bowl: it's rarely boring.
Georgia Tech at Georgia (Friday): Clean Old-Fashioned Hate in prime time? Yes, please!
Nebraska at Iowa (Friday): These mega-conferences have had problems getting rivalries to stick in some instances. This is not one of them. These natural rivals never played until Nebraska joined the Big Ten. Now we can't imagine life without it.
Auburn at Alabama: The Iron Bowl is always a good one, but what if the Tide have "cliched" a playoff berth? Are players going to opt out?
Oklahoma at LSU: This feels like a peculiar forced rivalry, but what is the SEC to do? You know what they should do? Let Oklahoma play Arkansas. Barry Switzer went to Arkansas and they share a border. It's more than we can say for LSU. There are no ties at all...
Texas at Texas A&M:
Who’s ready for this matchup? Texas A&M vs Texas in 2024!!! Conner vs Quinn!! Elko vs Sark!! Defense vs Offense!! The SEC vs the SEC ?…..
Quinn Ewers(5✨) was the #1 player and QB who reclassified to 2021 while Conner Weigman(5✨) was the #20 recruit and the #3 QB in 2022. pic.twitter.com/9C71v0lDml
— Jay Pops TAMU Football 0-0 SEC! SEC! #Gigem ?? (@JayPops5) December 2, 2023
Fans have been looking forward to rekindling this rivalry for 13 long years. I promise you this game will be nuts!
Washington at Oregon: Washington beat Oregon twice last year, single-handedly keeping them out of the playoff. The conference may have changed, but the hatred is still there.
Kansas State at Iowa State:
I just hope that whoever gets elected president makes sure that Farmageddon is played every single year.
— Derek Duke (@DerekDuke25) July 21, 2024
We still have Farmageddon for the next few years, folks. Who can forget what happened last year?
Welcome Iowa State true freshman RB Abu Sama III to the party. 16/276/3 TDs on Saturday against Kansas State. pic.twitter.com/Ztv6UZqnFw
— Ryan Roberts (@RiseNDraft) November 27, 2023
It has been a constant flex for ISU fans against K-State on social media for the last nine months. Abu Sama just scored another touchdown. This is the longest continuously played rivalry game in college football. Damn right, it means something!
Michigan at Ohio State: I'm more curious about opt-outs, especially if OSU is undefeated heading into this one.
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